Jewels as culture and continuity
Behold these spectacular gold funerary sandals: invented by the Egyptians for the afterlife.
They are used for that most casual of reasons: to beautify yourself, and for that most weighty of objectives: as an investment for the afterlife.
From savage to human
Jewels go back back in time to the dawn of civilization.
They symbolize culture and continuity– across geographies and generations.
Indeed, they symbolize the transition from savage to human– with all the culture and civility that it affords.
In that sense, jewellery is both universal and singular.
Jewels, much like the mountains they come from
Jewels cut across cultures but are also unique to a culture.
They are a fantastic barometer of the human condition.
They embody our fears and hopes.
We wear amulets to placate the Gods and necklaces to ornament ourselves.
Sumerian earrings, going back 5000 years
Every culture, pretty much, uses earrings.
How we pierce the ears, where we pierce, and what ornaments we wear on them are dazzlingly different.
Ancient earrings, yet how contemporary the design
Jewellery reflects a culture’s obsessions
Why else would monarchs wear a crown?
Why does a wedding get signified or sanctified by a ring or mangalsutra?
A gold headdress with feather-like tassels was worn by the headman of the village.
Some common motifs, materials and meanings
Like this coin necklace worn by the Akan people of Ghana, Africa.
It is remarkably similar to the gold kasu-mala necklace worn in Kerala.
When humans all over the world discovered pieces of gold in rivers and streams, they were excited by this precious metal.
The simplest thing to do was to beat it into thin shapes, the circle being the most beautiful.
And so it has come down through the generations as coin necklaces.
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